December 20, 2002—Pompton Plains, NJ—Specialty Sports is proud to announce that the second annual Specialty Sports PRO/AM HALF PIPE JAM’ will take place March 2nd and 3rd at Mountain Creek, an Intrawest resort (NYSE: IDR) located in Vernon, New Jersey. The two-day event will feature the highest level of competition in Superpipe with a combined purse worth over $75,000 in cash and prizes, including a guaranteed $10,000 for each first place male and female professional competitor. The purse is destined to increase as new sponsors sign on and a signature corporate sponsorship for the best trick competition is available.

The Specialty Sports PRO/AM HALF PIPE JAM is open to top competitors from all sanctioning bodies, with the result that the event brings qualified world-class athletes, international champions and Olympic contestants to the only NYC metropolitan-area ISF world qualifying event. The Specialty Sports PRO/AM HALF PIPE JAM will be held at Mountain Creek and will feature a half pipe engineered by Olympic SuperPipe designer Pat Melendowski of Planet Design.

Bill Yago, Owner of Specialty Sports, New Jersey’s top-tier extreme sports retailer, stated, “Last years Half Pipe Jam was an unqualified success for the riders, the sponsors and best of all, the attendees, who got to see the world’s best riders in an intimate mountain environment. This year we are having the half pipe built to true Superpipe specification and will also be running a best trick contest that promises to make for thrilling competition.”

PRO/AM HALF PIPE JAM Event organizer and IJC Judge Jason Grossi said, “I just returned from judging the Grand Prix Olympic qualifiers and the timing of the Pipe Jam, the cash and the prizes have all combined to generate great interest in our event. We are seeing heavy interest from top riders including Ross Powers, Matt and Danny Kass, Adam Petraska, Luke Wynen, Lane Knaack, and Colin Langlois for the guys and Tricia Burns, Barret Christie, Michelle Taggart and Jamie MacLeod for the girls. Because of the pure Jam format of the event, we are expecting to see a very high level of competition as we get into the finals. We are also eager to see the Kass brothers defend their early stomping grounds against world-class competitors. The Pipe Jam is a very low pressure, fun event for the riders and as a result you get to see how good they really are in a world class half pipe at Mountain Creek.”

The event will also include free demonstrations, product sampling and giveaways from event sponsors and equipment manufacturers. Top bands will be performing at the events and limited ALL-Access VIP passes will be available only through sponsors for the PRO/AM HALF PIPE JAM competition and the after party at the Legends Hotel and Resort. Event sponsors to date include JVC, Palmer and Steve Madden. Gold, Silver and Bronze corporate-level sponsorships are available in select product areas.

SuperPipe qualifying events are slated for March 2, with finals and Best Trick to take place on March 3. As for qualifying, both the SuperPipe and Best trick events are open to the first 150 registrants. Pre-registration for each discipline is $150 for pros and $85 for amateurs. The top 20 qualifiers in each division advance to the finals. On site registration will be held beginning Friday March 1 at Mountain Creek. Contestants can pre-register by calling (973)283-8738 or www.3rd-mm.com/PipeJam.